A journalist who was at Hillsborough on the day of the disaster said he was told a ‘wicked lie’ about a gate being broken down by Liverpool fans trying to get into the ground.

Giving evidence at the inquests, David Walker, who at the time worked for the Daily Mail and is now sports editor of the Sunday Mirror, said as events unfolded on the day he initially thought he was dealing with a hooligan situation because people were being told ticketless fans had broken down the gate.

But when the match was abandoned and he made his way onto the pitch, he spoke to Liverpool fans who told him the exit gate had been opened allowing fans in. He said this was contrary to what he’d been told, and what the FA were leaking.

Mr Walker told the jury he can’t remember who first said the gate had been broken down by fans.

Mark George QC, asking questions on behalf of 22 of the families, said: “It was a wicked lie, wasn't it?”

Mr Walker said yes and agreed he was misled by it.

Mr George asked about fans who said they got in without tickets. Mr Walker said he spoke to between 12 and 20 fans and some said they got in and still had a full ticket.

Mr Walker said when he went to Gate C later that afternoon, he could see it had not been broken. He said he also checked the wooden doors at the tunnel, going into the central pens and could see they hadn't been broken.

Mr Walker later told the jury the disaster would not have happened if former match commander Chief Superintendent Brian Mole had been in charge.

Chief Superintendent Mole was Hillsborough’s most experienced match commander and replaced by Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield shortly before the disaster.

David Duckenfield, who was South Yorkshire Police match commander on the day of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989

During questioning by John Beggs QC, representing retired superintendents David Duckenfield, Roger Greenwood and Roger Marshall, who were on duty on the day of the disaster, Mr Walker agreed that Mr Duckenfield had "little to no experience of sellout games at Hillsborough".

Mr Beggs said: "So what we have, therefore, is an exemplary officer with leadership skills with a good blueprint for capacity matches, who is transferred out a matter of 19 or 20 days before this huge match."

Mr Walker said yes.

He added: “The evidence of the day suggested there was a complete breakdown in how the game was being policed.

“(...) the fact that Brian Mole was removed from policing the Hillsborough area, not just the stadium, the actual area, and transferred to Barnsley, the fact that that happened and the events of the day I think are inextricably linked.”

Earlier in today’s hearing Mr Walker was questioned by Rajiv Menon, on behalf of some of the families.

The jury heard Mr Walker sat in the south stand as he waited for the game to begin, having come in through the Spion Kop end. He had a clear view of the Leppings Lane terraces.

Mr Menon showed Mr Walker a statement he previously made which said: “I scanned the ground and at about 2.40pm I recall specifically noting that the centre sections of the terracing at the Leppings Lane end were packed to capacity and that the end sections were both free of fans for what I counted as four to six steps completely.”

In the statement Mr Walker said that around the time of kick-off, he saw youngsters climbing up the fence, obviously in distress.

Fans escape the Leppings Lane at Hillsborough

He said: “I remember that policemen behind the goal were trying to put them back in”, and that it was "blindingly obvious" fans were in distress.

Mr Walker said he remembers seeing a fan giving heart massage to a young boy.

He said he also remembers seeing a photographer pushing a policeman onto the pitch, who ran to the referee and had the match cancelled.

Mr Walker said from his seat he couldn’t see the police doing anything to assist with filling pens or distributing fans across the terrace.

The first time police were noticeable, he said, was when the game had started and people were trying to climb out onto the pitch.

He added: “There appeared to be no leadership as the disaster unfolded.

“I could see from my position that the centre pens were full, and then overfull, as people were passing people out, yet no action was ordered from the police control box, who had a perfect view.”

He said he felt "dismay" at the "absolute chaos".

Mr Walker said after the changeover of policing at Hillsborough there had been just one match prior to the disaster, with a crowd of 15,777.

He added: "To compare that with what you are then expecting somebody to mastermind, the policing of a semi-final, well it was a hugely challenging situation and one that I think led to the chaos and situation that we witnessed on that day.”